mythicalbeasts6jfandomcom-20200213-history
Chinese Birds
BY ANDREW UEN Introduction Chinese Birds are the second well-known section of Chinese Mythical Beasts. Pretty much everyone knows the Phoenix, a bird which lives for hundreds of years, then rebirths in ashes. But there are some others like Feng and Huang who are not well-known, but were one of the few animals sacred and rule China. Chinese Birds are sacred in China, especially the Phoenix. The Phoenix has nine-tails, which symbolises longevity and eternality but the Phoenix also represents the Empress of China. Chinese Birds in the Chinese Zodiac But one thing that I thought about was why any of the Chinese Birds were not in the Chinese Zodiac. All the animals in the Chinese Zodiac were not all sacred. So why was it that one of the most sacred animals in Chinese Mythology was left out? My personal opinion would be there is no real Chinese Bird. For example, there are hundreds of thousands of bird species, narrowing down to at least 1000 species in China. So I believe that the Chinese could not distinguish one species to represent all. For example, take a pig for instance. The pig was in the Chinese Zodiac, not exactly a sacred animal. But, the pig could be distinguished as one species to represent all. Then there's the Chinese Dragon. It would be hard to narrow a representitive species for the Chinese Dragons but I believe it would come down to the most important and well-known. So they probably picked the Dragon King. But another reason why the Chinese Bird is maybe they could not tame it or make it participate in the race. Maybe, Feng and Huang (a Chinese Bird who rules all the birds in China) didn't want to participate in the race. Feng and Huang Feng and Huang are Chinese Birds in Chinese Mythology. They supposedly reign over all the birds in China. Feng is a male and Huang is a female. But there is no real distinction between them so they are fused together as a feminine creature. This is so it can be paired with Chinese Dragons, which are considered a more masculine beast. Phoenix The Phoenix is a sacred bird in China but not many people know it was first called the Nine-Headed Bird. The Phoenix is known to be engulfed in fire and has nine tails which are gold, scarlet, blue, purple or green. The Phoenix has a lifespan of up to 1000 years. Before it dies, it builds itself a nest of twigs and ignites them, setting fire to the nest and the bird. After the Phoenix has been burned to ashes, a new Phoenix or Phoenix egg emerges. As I said before, a Phoenix has nine-tails. The number nine is sacred in China because it represents longevity and eternality. This is why the Phoenix is such a sacred bird. The Phoenix is also the symbol of the Empresses and the Chinese Dragon is the symbol of the Emperor. The Nine-Headed Bird The Nine-Headed Bird is the earliest form of the Chinese Phoenix. It used to be worshipped by ancient native in Huebi Province. The Nine-Headed Bird was one of the most worshipped birds in all of China, including the Chinese Dragon. The number nine is special in China as it symbolises longevity and eternality. Back to the Main Page: http://mythicalbeasts6j.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page